User blog:Samdudeman120/One last shot
The hum of the StormHawks engines pushing it through hyperspace filled the air, a calming sound that accompanied the Five members of Alpha Squad wherever they went. The hum would grow in intensity and then settle again, off and on every minute or so, as the Mark III Hyper-travel warp core recycled the power and shot it back into the thrust units. Captain Riken, joined by his four companions in the cockpit of the StormHawk, were counting on the sound to stop any minute, now, as they neared Corellia for what seemed like the hundredth time. Their only mission was to deliver supplies, pick-up some passengers, destroy some fighters and then jump to lightspeed, heading for the secret drop-off depot at Poliss Massa. This was their sixth and final run, and it was halfway over. But no plan ever survives an encounter with the enemy. "We're breaking lightspeed in ten," Sam announced. The sound of Alpha squad charging their blasters, adjusting their bandoliers, sheathing their daggers and holstering their sidearms had become a routine event at this point in the journey. Sam drew one of his pistols, checked the charge, then did the same for the other. One at a time, so that you were never fully disarmed, just like his uncle had taught him. The StormHawk broke from lightspeed, and as the crew stood to make their way to the drop ramp Sam got the distinct feeling that he was making the greatest mistake of his life. The ship had just entered Corellia's atmosphere. He slapped the release on the ramp, then stood halfway down it, front and center of his team. First one on the battlefield, last one off. That was the rule of leadership. Anyone who did any less was not a man, but a coward. As the ramp lowered Sam could make out the familiar landmarks that marked the drop zone. The ship slowed to a crawl as it hovered mere inches off the ground. Alpha Squad deployed. And then Sam woke up. One month earlier "Sam, you can't do this! Not again!" Turtle shouted, as they moved through the hangar to the launch site, where his experimental fighter was sitting. It was designed to map uncharted hyperspace routes so that the Alliance could move undetected. "Leaving the Alliance - me - all of us? You promissed! You said you'd never do it again!" Sam chuckled. "Turtle, I promissed I'd never vanish again. And I meant it. All I am doing is going on a survey with Rogue Squadron. It'll take less than a month." "That's what you said last time... Last time I waited a long time. And last time you gave no reason to why you were gone so long, no reason as to why you left, ''and not any communication during that time, at all. Excuse me if I am concerned." Sam stopped, grabbed her by her shoulders, looked into her eyes. She was afraid, unsure. "You know I'd never do this to hurt you." "I know, Sam, but I - " "You know." He pulled her close, hugging her tightly. "I will come back. If it's the last thing I do, I will come back. "I... I know." He planted a kiss on her forehead, then climbed the ladder to the experimental X-wing, dropping into the cockpit, and grabbing his helmet. He looked into the reflective visor, saw his own uncertainty, his own fear. Turtle had climbed up after him, standing on the ladder. "You are going to come back. I know you will." "That's right. I will," he said, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "Nothing can keep me from home that long." "You be careful. Blast it, Sam. ''Be. Careful." ''' Sam smirked, gave her a gentle kiss and then pulled his helmet on. "Course, commander. I gotta live if we're all gonna celebrate, now don't I?" "Yeah. You do," she said, smiling back at him. "So what do I get to keep of yours if you don't?" Sam smiled, pulled something from his pocket. "Meant to give this to you on your birthday, but it was kinda hard to find a way to do that in the middle of all that blaster fire." He lifted the necklace up, a golden chain, with an emerald hanging from it, marked with her initials on the back. "I figured it could have waited for just a day longer." She took it, put it on. "Where did you get this?" "Ah, see, you didn't know that this scoundrel can do a little bit of everything. Including making jewelry." "So Tricky had nothing to do with it?" "Well... He might have made the chain. And the protective casing. And fitted them together. But I cut the stone." "It seems I've underestimated you, captain," she said teasingly. A solid knock on the canopy made them both jump a little. "Time to go, Captain. Antillies is not going to wait much longer." "Right," Sam said, pulling on his gloves, and hitting the canopy hatch once. "Seeya when I get back, Turtle." "Goodbye, Sam," she said, gripping the necklace in both hands. "May the Force be with you." "And you." The hatch sealed, and Turtle jumped off, backing away as the ship ascended. Same waved, and pulled the nose of the ship away, just as the ground crew waved the squadron off. The thirteen x-wing fighters sped off into space, Sam in the lead. The experimental fighter flew like an A-wing, fast and smooth. They quickly broke atmosphere, and formed into a single-file line, heading behind Yavin. "Alright, Rogue Squadron, just get me to the nearest hyper buoy and I'll be off." "You got it, Sam. Nearest one is just beyon the star, hidden in an asteroid cluster. We'll head there, and then you're on your own, "Wedge said. It'll be just a couple of minutes." "Got it." As they neared the buoy Sam felt good. He felt like he would do this mission and be back in time to help Ani move from the old room to their new one. Poor guy had to do it all on his own, for now. Sam checked his hyperspace map. It had all the acknowledged routes that had been there for a thousand years, and a couple that were added a few years ago. Sam knew the risk he was taking - and so did his friends - scouting hyperspace routes. But it had to be done. First Yavin IV, then Hoth, and now they had nowhere to go except back to the Yavin system. But things would be different this time. Admiral Ackbar had found them a home on Mon Cala, and that was where Sam was headed, with this new, unexplored route. Sam was told that if Han had not gone missing after the seige of Bespin that he and Chewbaaca had planned on doing it - after their business with Jabba, of course. "Contact!" Sam broke off his course and rolled into formation with Antillies and Janson. "What's going on?" "It's the Empire! They spotted us! All S-foils, attack positions!" TIE fighters, in all shapes and sizes came roaring toword the hyperspace buoy. And just behind them an Imperial dreadnaught. If they destroyed the buoy Sam's mission would be over. "Okay... Change of plans," Wedge said. "Primary objective: get Riken on his way." Sam smacked the wing-lock commands, then charged his lasers. "I'm on your wing, Wedge. I can help." "No, Riken! Get outta here, we'll handle this!" Sam fired off a lucky volley at the approaching TIEs, vaping three of them. "If that buoy goes down we're all in trouble, Wedge." "I know! So get going before that happens! Use the short jump coil!" Sam located it, and readied the button. He fired off another volley, and vaped two more fighters. "Go, now!" Sam engaged the short jump coil, instantly arriving at the buoy. He remotely linked the computer to his hyperspace map, then calculated the jump to lightspeed. "May the Force be with you, boys." Sam got the hyperspace route down, and made the jump to lightspeed. But as fast as he entered lightspeed he was pulled back out, to the demoralising sight of an Interdictor class Star Destroyer. "No... No way! Wedge?!" "I see it, I see it!" Sam banked away as hard as he could, quickly rejoining Rogue Squadron. "Warn the base on III. We can't get boxed in here!" "We won't, Sam. Just fly. Get out of here as fast as you can. We'll go the long way if we have to," Wedge said, sounding more unsure of his plan then Sam was. "Wes, Hobby, escort him." "You got it, boss," Wes Janson responded. "Follow me, captain." The three of them took off toward the Interdictor, rolling through the turbolaser fire as the behemoth responded to their plan. Sam engaged the experimental thrust drive unit, maxing out the speed. Wes and Hobby quickly disappeared from Sam's radar, the slower fighters being only one sixth the speed of the experimental fighter. Sam blasted away at the bridge of the ship, unsurprised by the fact that their shields were already up. He launched four of his torpedos at once, opening a small hole in the shield. He then fired all his weapons into that hole; lasers, torpedos, cuncussion missiles and slug guns, cutting straight through the ship. He gunned for the opening. The expanding opening in the shield had stabilized, and then started to close. Sam hesitated only a moment as he calculated the jump to lightspeed. "Thanks for the cover, boys," Sam said over the comm. "Good luck, cap!" Sam sucked in a deep breath, then pushed the throttle forward, blasting through the bridge of the Interdictor, taking computer terminals and several ship personell with him as he entered hyperspace. Category:Blog posts